Chapter 24 Chapter 23: Terrorists Appear

In the Northern Apricot Alliance, the great powers collectively watched Duke Huan of Qi laugh, and no one came to meddle except Song Guo.Even Song Guo, who attended the meeting, ran away after half the meeting.These countries are also used to laxity, and they don't think about Qi Huangong's back, but Zhou Tianzi's righteous name is there. If you don't give Qi Huangong face, then you don't give Zhou Tianzi face. This crime of violating the king's order is not small . In this way, Duke Huan of Qi had a reason to attack the disobedient princes: You dare not listen to the emperor, and the emperor ordered me to beat you, and you are not convinced?So according to the established plan, the armies of Chen, Cai, and Zhu were summoned and marched to Lu together.In fact, how much strength these three small countries can have is just that Duke Huan of Qi pulled them over to make up the numbers, and by the way, they also gained momentum.

In June 681 BC, Duke Huan of Qi led the Allied Forces of the Four Kingdoms to attack Sui State, a small vassal state of Lu State (at the junction of Ningyang County and Feicheng County in Shandong Province today).For such a small country, the total population of the whole country is not as large as the army of Qi State. How can it resist the army of Duke Huan of Qi?Soon the country will perish. After destroying the State of Sui, Duke Huan of Qi prepared to take advantage of the situation and attack the State of Lu in one fell swoop to avenge his defeat by Changshao three years ago.Guan Zhong said: "The last time we fought against Lu, we were defeated because our teachers came out of nowhere. This time is different. Lu didn't obey the emperor's order and didn't come to the alliance. It was Lu's own fault. We are here for the emperor. If you want to conquer it, you have to be courteous first and then soldiers. You can first send an envoy to Luhou to deliver a letter, explain the truth to him, and then contact Luhou's mother, that is, your sister, and ask her to come forward to persuade Luhou. If Luhou insists on If you are our enemy, it is not too late to use your sword." So Duke Huan of Qi sent a messenger to the state of Lu.

The news of Sui's demise reached Qufu, and Duke Zhuang of Lu became angry.Why is this Xiaobai so annoying? He just stopped for a few years and came to beat us again. Have you forgotten how he lost in Changshao last time? Shi Bo, the governing official of the State of Lu, said: "The last battle of Changshao was caused by the State of Qi, who invaded us without anyone knowing. It’s our fault for not following the king’s orders first. I don’t think it’s appropriate to confront Qi State head-on, it’s better to send envoys to make peace, so as not to be accused of resisting the king’s teacher.”

Cao GUI, the hero of the Battle of Changshao, also advocated making peace with Qi.At this time, Wen Jiang also received a letter from Duke Huan of Qi, urging Duke Zhuang of Lu to make peace with Qi.After weighing the stakes, Duke Zhuang of Lu realized that this battle was really unwinnable, so he decided to go down the slope and reconcile with Qi.He also wrote a letter to Duke Huan of Qi, agreeing to make peace, but asked the State of Qi to withdraw its troops first to save face for the State of Lu. Acheng Town, Yanggu County, Shandong Province) for negotiation. Duke Huan of Qi breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that Marquis Lu was very knowledgeable about current affairs, so he went back to make preparations for the alliance.

Come back and talk about the country of Lu.In the State of Lu there was a doctor named Cao Mo, who was very brave in battle, but his brain was not very quick, and he belonged to the kind with strong limbs and simple mind.Cao Mo once led his army to fight against the state of Qi, but it was a pity that his command was improper, and he was defeated three times in a row.Although victory or defeat is a common matter in military affairs, it is not very honorable to be defeated often, which makes Cao Mo feel ashamed in front of the people of the country.This time when he heard that the monarch was going to negotiate with the Marquis of Qi, Cao Mo volunteered to go with Duke Zhuang of Lu.

Duke Zhuang of Lu said to Cao Mo, "I don't want to expose your faults, but you have stumbled a few times in front of the people of Qi. I'm afraid that if you go, you will be laughed at by the people of Qi. You have a bad temper. If you laugh at you, you will get angry easily. Once you can't think about it, it's really inappropriate for you to have something wrong. " Cao Mo said, "I'm not so narrow-minded! This time, I'm going to tell Qi that our country of Lu is not easy to bully. Although I have lost to them a few times, I am not afraid of them. If there is a chance, I will I also want to wash away my previous shame by the way."

When Lu Zhuanggong heard it, what's the matter, what else do you want to make?He hurriedly said: "What are you going to do? It's a national matter, you are not allowed to mess around." Cao Mo said, "How can I mess around? Just do what you should do when the time comes. Leave me alone, I have my own plan." Duke Lu Zhuang thought about it, anyway, this time he was going to cede the land and pay compensation, and it was not a good thing, who should be brought along.If Cao Mo is willing to follow, then take him along.When the day of the meeting came, Duke Zhuang of Lu took Cao Mo to Ke.Duke Huan of Qi has already set up a high platform for the alliance here, just waiting for Duke Zhuang of Lu to arrive.At that time, the alliance between countries must be announced to the heaven and earth, and anyone who violates the alliance will be punished by the heaven.Therefore, it is necessary to establish an alliance platform, the function of which is that the monarchs of two countries (or multiple countries) worship heaven and earth together and make vows here.

Duke Zhuang of Lu came to the stage of the Huimeng. There were three floors inside and three floors outside the stage of the Huimeng. There were soldiers from Qi State densely packed.This murderous scene made Lu Zhuanggong shiver. Cao Mo was not afraid at all, and with the dagger slung across his shoulders, he helped Duke Zhuang of Lu go straight to the Huimeng platform.Dong Guoya, a senior officer of the State of Qi, was watching the gate. He stopped Cao Mo and Duke Zhuang of Lu and said, "For this alliance, only one ruler and one minister are allowed on the stage, and no weapons are allowed."

The soldiers on both sides were about to stop Cao Mo and ask him to unarm.Cao Mo stared at him, and strode towards the stage, the soldiers on both sides couldn't stop him.Dong Guoya took a look, why is this guy so fierce. Just like that, Cao Mo took his sword and went up to the meeting platform with Duke Zhuang of Lu.After exchanging greetings with Duke Huan of Qi, the procedure of meeting officially began. After the two parties agree to form an alliance, there is an important step, which is to make an alliance with blood and declare it to the world.To smear blood is to smear the blood of livestock on the lips to show sincerity, and to declare to heaven and earth means to let God testify that anyone who breaks his oath will be punished by God.This ceremony gradually evolved into drinking blood wine or something, and the blood used gradually developed from animal blood to human blood. The ceremony became more and more scary, but the effect became worse and worse. People gradually did not take the oath as a something happened.However, in the Spring and Autumn Period, people still believed in the ritual of drinking blood.

Just as the servants on the left and right were bringing up the copper plate containing blood, Cao Mo jumped up suddenly, grabbed Qi Huangong's sleeve with his left hand, and pulled out his short sword with his right hand, glaring at Qi Huan. Guan Zhong saw that this posture was wrong. The doctor of Lu Guo wanted to play a human bomb.So Guan Zhong hurried over, covered Duke Huan of Qi with his body, and asked Cao Mo loudly, "Doctor, what are you doing? We are all big countries, and we play terrorism. If we talk about it, we will be laughed at." Cao Mo said, "I have no other intention, but I just want to ask your lord: Your Qi State has repeatedly bullied our Lu State, causing us to cede land and pay compensation. Now, your Qi State has pushed all the borders under the capital of our Lu State. If one day the walls of our capital fall down, it will be able to press down on your border, don’t you think it’s too much of a force?”

Guan Zhong knew that now was not the time to reason with this guy, the most important thing was to appease him first, so he asked, "What do you plan to do, doctor?" Cao Mo said angrily, "How about it? I want you to return all the lands that you have invaded from Lu, so that I promise not to hurt Qihou, and in the future, Lu will recognize Qihou's supremacy." Guan Zhong knew that in this state, no matter what Cao Mo asked, you had to agree, otherwise Duke Huan of Qi's life would be over.Guan Zhong said to Duke Huan of Qi who was already frightened and stupid: "My lord, why don't you promise Doctor Cao soon?" Only then did Duke Huan come back to his senses, and hurriedly said: "Okay, I agree, as long as you don't use swords and guns, we can discuss everything." He also wanted to scare Cao Mo first, and then think about it slowly. Method. Don't look at Cao Mo's lack of brain capacity, but at critical moments, he will still be careful.He said: "It's not enough to just promise verbally. You have to make an alliance with our monarch to settle this matter, or I won't let go." While talking, Cao Mo asked the waiter to bring the copper plate containing the blood, and asked Duke Huan of Qi and Duke Zhuang Lu to drink the blood one by one.Duke Zhuang of Lu was also taken aback because Cao Mo didn't say hello to him beforehand.What Cao Mo is doing now is extremely dangerous.If Duke Huan of Qi was hurt by the heat of Cao Mo's head, Duke Lu Zhuang and his ministers would not plan to return home alive no matter what. Of course, when his life was still in the hands of others, Duke Huan of Qi couldn't care less about Marquis Lu.The monarchs of Qi and Lu signed a pledge and took a blood oath in person, agreeing that Qi would return all the land that Qi had previously invaded and occupied from Lu, and that the two countries would become allies and never fight. After the oath was over, Duke Huan of Qi said, "Doctor Cao, can you let go this time?" Cao Mo said, "No, I'm still worried about the oath of the monarch. I have to drink blood with Guan Zhong." "Dr. Cao, can you still not trust me? I am a majestic monarch, how can I not count my words? Don't swear to Zhongfu again. I promise to return your land of Lu Kingdom." Cao Mo thought about it, anyway, if they really want to go back on their word, then how many people I swear will have the same effect, so why not just trust Qihou.Then Cao Mo let go of Duke Huan's sleeve with his left hand, threw the dagger on the ground with his right, and got off the meeting platform without looking back. Thus ended the first day of the meeting.Duke Zhuang of Lu had been confused for a long time. He originally planned to cede the land for compensation, but he didn't expect not only not to cede the land, but to return all the land he lost before.Duke Zhuang of Lu returned to the hotel as if he was sleepwalking, and he naturally gave Cao Mo a big reward. Duke Huan of Qi was extremely depressed. The officials of Qi State, such as Dong Guoya and Prince Chengfu, all demanded to detain Marquis Lu, especially Cao Mo, who was too stinky. If he still dares to pretend to be cool after becoming a monarch, he must be taught a lesson.As for the oath to return the land, who will keep it? The laws after 2000 all stipulate that signing a pledge under the threat of life is invalid.Duke Huan of Qi himself became more and more angry, the Beixing League would be embarrassing enough, but this time the Kedi League, he himself was hijacked by terrorists, where should he put his face? It was still Guan Zhong who had a long-term vision. He persuaded Duke Huan of Qi and all the senior officials, saying: "The king has agreed to the request of the State of Lu and swore an oath of blood. If we take revenge on Marquis Lu and Cao Mo, it will be the same as telling the people of the world. Are we not trustworthy? So not only can we not detain Marquis Lu, but also return the land of Lu State according to the agreement. In this way, not only the Lu National Congress will thank us, but also the princes of the world will appreciate us. Monarch, if you want to convince the princes, what is the most important thing? Important? Integrity!" Duke Huan of Qi is angry, but since the Battle of Changshao, he has a principle, that is, he obeys Guan Zhong in everything.As long as Guan Zhong said that this matter cannot be done, no matter how much he thought about it, he would not do it.This time was no exception, in the end Duke Huan of Qi endured it, and the next day he drank and said goodbye to Duke Lu Zhuang and treated each other with courtesy.Not only did they not take revenge on the terrorist Cao Mo, but they immediately returned the land of the State of Lu.Duke Zhuang of Lu saw that Marquis Qi really spoke his mind. He didn't say anything, and the younger brother will follow you from now on. Qilu formed an alliance, and for Duke Huan of Qi, the land to the east was flat.The princes in the Central Plains were also very moved after hearing about Duke Huan of Qi's deeds of trustworthiness.Immediately, Wei Guo and Cao Guo came to seek refuge with Duke Huan of Qi. They first admitted their guilt for disobeying the king's order and not coming to the Beixinghuimeng, and then expressed that they would follow Duke Huan of Qi. Duke Huan of Qi didn't expect that the shameful incident of being hijacked would bring unexpected results instead.It seems that what Zhongfu said is right, if you want to convince others, you have to be honest.And Cao Mo, who used terror to kidnap Duke Huan of Qi, has since left his name in history, becoming the originator of the assassin industry. However, there are still many unclear topics about Cao Mo.If we compare the two most important historical books, "Historical Records" and "Zuo Zhuan", we will find that there is no record of Cao Mo in "Historical Records" and "Zuo Zhuan" .Some people say that Cao Mo and Cao GUI are actually the same person, but people got their names mixed up during the story. "Historical Records" and "Zuo Zhuan" focus on his deeds differently, so there is such a big difference in the personalities and styles of the two people. But if Cao Mo and Cao GUI were really one person, the contrast would be too great.Cao GUI looks like a wise man, while Cao Mo is just a stunned young man.Moreover, the industry of assassins appeared in large numbers during the Warring States Period, and in the early Spring and Autumn Period, it was not popular to use terrorism to solve problems.Therefore, some scholars believe that Cao Mo is just an image fabricated by people in the Warring States Period under the guise of Cao GUI's name, probably to set an example for those who are assassins and play a motivating role.What is the truth, due to the long history, I am afraid it is difficult to verify clearly.In the author's opinion, the stories of Cao GUI and Cao Mo are both wonderful, and emotionally, I really can't bear to say which one is true and which one is false.Perhaps most readers, like me, hope that these two characters and their stories are true. A sudden terrorist incident made Duke Huan of Qi's reputation for honesty resound throughout the world.Countries such as Lu and Wei who were originally unconvinced were also subdued.The next step is to clean up that Song Guo who deserted during the meeting. Will the Song Congress be convinced?